Matt Thistlethwaite (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

The claims by Senators Cormann and Joyce and those opposite relating to the Future Fund are completely misleading and incorrect. They also demonstrate a complete lack of understanding of the operation of the Future Fund and indeed the architecture for the management of the fund that was put in place by those opposite when they were in government. Claims of accounting tricks and withdrawals from the fund are completely misleading. Those opposite fail to under­stand risk in a difficult economic environ­ment. They fail to understand a change in investment mix to reduce risk in a difficult economic environment. They fail to understand that the timing of the sale of assets related to the Future Fund is an issue for the Future Fund—a Future Fund with an independent board of guardians, amongst whom is none other than the former Treasurer, Peter Costello. They fail to understand just how this fund works.

This also demonstrates a complete lack of credibility when it comes to economic management. This is from those opposite, who went to the last election with a suite of policies that, when costed, came up $11 billion short. Even their own auditors would not give an unqualified appraisal of their accounting for their election promises. Those opposite criticised the stimulus package that this government put in place to deal with the financial crisis and to support communities and jobs. What has happened in the wake of that? We have one of the strongest economies in the OECD and a job rate that is the envy of the United States and the United Kingdom, with an unemployment rate half the rate in those countries. We did an excellent job of managing the economy during the global financial crisis.

More recently, a leak from the opposition party room has indicated that they are planning $70 billion worth of cuts to services in the lead-up to the next election. They plan to go to the election with a policy of restoring a surplus but they have failed to come clean with the Australian people about how they are going to achieve this surplus. How are they going to achieve this surplus without the revenue from the minerals resource rent tax? How are they going to achieve this surplus without the revenue from carbon pricing? There is one way they are going to achieve this perceived surplus, and that is through cuts to services—$70 billion worth.

They will not come clean with people in their individual electorates. I have asked the member for Calare, John Cobb, to come clean with the people of Calare about what services are going to be cut in that electorate. Is Medicare on the line? Is the childcare rebate on the line? Are increases to pensions on the line? Is a reduction in the company tax rate on the line? What services are those opposite going to cut from the budget to achieve their so-called surplus?

When it comes to carbon pricing, the advice of all the experts throughout the world on what is one of the most pressing environmental and economic issues facing our nation is that an emissions trading scheme is the most cost-effective way of tackling climate change.